1. Field of the Invention
A method of operating a wind power installation and a wind power installation for carrying out the method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Wind power installations using more modern technology have long been known. Such wind power installations have rotors comprising at least one or more rotor blades. The rotors and accordingly the rotor blades carried thereby of wind power installations are subjected to a particular degree to the ambient environmental influences such as for example rain, snow, hail or also insects. In particular the leading edges of the rotor blades are heavily loaded in that respect. In that situation it can happen that the rotor blades and in particular the leading edges thereof, after some time, suffer from (mechanical) damage, for which cost-intensive repair is necessary, especially as a crane is frequently required for that purpose and the entire wind power installation is also stopped for a prolonged period due to the repair and under some circumstances even individual rotor blades have to be transported away to the repair location.
Such damage is to be attributed to erosion effects which damage the surface—the so-called gel coat—of the rotor blades, which as the counterpart results in a worsening of the aerodynamic properties of the blades.